Life, Love, Loss, Lunacy
by roses-are-a-weed
Summary: Sequel to Ranma's... Husband? Just over a month has passed and everything has finally begun to reach a state near normal. Of course, this is Nerima, so normal... not likely to last long. On Hiatus.


Title: Ranma's… Husband? II: Life, Love, Loss, Lunacy: Prologue.

Rating: Teenish.

Disclaimer: Not mine.

Official Pairings: Akane/Mousse, Kiyoshi/Ranma, Ryu/Kasumi, Nabiki/Hitomi.

Author's notes: Wow, okay… yeah. Sorry this took so long, but there you go, it's done now. However I'm not certain when the next bit will be done as Uni has started and I am somewhat busy… and easily distracted.

Final Note: I hope you like, it's only the beginning, it'll get more interesting soon. I also would like to thank all of you who read this and, especially, all who will review it.

000

(_Ranma's POV_)

He smiled softly, sadly, at Ukyou as they shook hands. "So that it then…" she sighed, before giving him a wide, yet obviously forced, smile "Well, as I promised… engagement over."

He nodded, not sure of what to say. Part of him, most of him, was insanely happy to finally have it over, to be free of… Well not _everyone_ that thought they were in love with him, not until fate or fortune smiled on him and the Kunos got something resembling a clue, _but_! But, an engagement was no longer standing between him and the two fiancées that actually meant something to him, that he liked.

First Akane and now Ukyou.

He was free of her, well… not free of _her,_ which sort of implied that he hated being around her, but he was free of the thing that had caused her so much pain, that had turned someone he thought was a friend into something resembling a _threat_…

Which meant he was finally, really, allowed to be her friend; which was good, because in the five and a half weeks since he'd been working for her he'd remembered why he used to like her so much.

It should have taken longer for him to pay her back, but he'd put in more work that she'd asked him for, just wanting for it to be over, and after the first week his father had started sending money, at first just to the Tendous (Kasumi actually), because they were taking care of him and they didn't have much money as it was. Not a lot at first, but soon enough it had increased to the point where Kasumi was giving him part of it, which he gave to Ukyou, which meant that he had now, finally, paid off the okonomiyaki cart his old man had stolen all those years ago.

So, yes…

Acting on impulse he reached out and pulled her into a hug, whispering into her ear "It'll be fine Ucchan. It'll be fine, you'll meet someone… and we're still friends, yeah?"

She nodded shakily against his shoulder before pulling back and giving him a hearty (if a bit tearstained) slap on the back "Come on, get going. I'm sure Kiyoshi is waiting for you."

He gave her a small, embarrassed smile and turned to leave, calling "See ya Ucchan," over his shoulder as he did.

As the door started to swing shut behind him he heard her reply, sounding so very sad, "See ya… Ranma." He paused for a second, wondering if he should go back and make sure she was alright, but he suspected that that would just make things worse.

Shaking his head he turned towards the vacant lot and started walking, if he was lucky he'd get there in time to see another one of Ryu's attempts to beat himself to death against his brother's fists. While he'd been busy working at Ucchan's, Kiyoshi had joined in the great quest to make Akane a good martial artist… he wasn't quite sure _why…_ Anyway, soon after that Ryu had joined them all, trying to get back into shape because Kasumi had decided that it was time to reopen the Tendou Dojo and he'd volunteered to teach… so…

Even though he'd been pretty busy, and hadn't been around as much as he'd have liked, between Kiyoshi and Akane talking about it and their tendency to tease Ryu about it, he had a fairly good idea of exactly how badly out of practice Ryu was.

It sounded… well, he would have preferred spending time with all of them and making fun of Ryu himself, but he'd been… _well, he could now, couldn't he_? Which was why he was on his way to see what they were up to, to see how far they'd progressed… and lend a hand of course; especially as Cologne had been going on and on and on about how they needed to practice against someone who specialised in speed.

He was looking forward to seeing Kiyoshi. It was Saturday, so he hadn't seen the other boy since very late last night – when he'd finally sloped in from working at Ucchan's – and even then it had only been for a moment, because he'd needed a bath and then he'd been so _tired_… but he wasn't tired now, and not only that he probably wasn't going to be so tired for the near future, so they'd finally have a chance to spend some time together. He felt himself blush at the thought.

They hadn't really… _done_ _anything_… yet, which was partly because he'd been so busy, but… _but_… well… he was nervous, just a bit, and… and… well, it went against everything his father had ever forced into his head, didn't it? But that didn't stop him from wanting… wanting more than a quick, stolen kiss every day or so when he wasn't working.

The worst thing was, though, that… as much as he wanted to kiss Kiyoshi, to hold and be held by Kiyoshi, to even go out on stupid, pointless dates… he was scared. He was. He couldn't quite make himself comfortable with being with Kiyoshi, especially if he was _male_ at the time. It was just some stupid crap left in his head from growing up with his old man, but… _but,_ he was terrified that Kiyoshi would find out, would see it in him, and then not want to be with him anymore.

Stupid. It was…

It didn't matter. It didn't… he wasn't going to think about it, especially as he was only a couple of houses away from the vacant lot. A loud "Oomph," and the sound of something crashing into something else made him hurry up, just in case he missed something.

He arrived just in time to see Ryu go flying, and Akane trying not to look too smug. He blinked in surprise, before shrugging and making his way over to where Kiyoshi was sitting with Mousse and watching the other two fight. He nodded to Cologne, who nodded back, as he passed her and then flopped down next to his… next to Kiyoshi, his side pressing against the other boy's.

Kiyoshi shot him a quick, warm smile before they both turned their attention to watching Akane and Ryu…

_Wow, when had she gotten so good?_

000

(_Genma's POV_)

She smiled up at him softly, her hand reaching out for his and bringing it to the soft curve of her belly. "I'm pregnant," she said, with a strange little smile on her face, "We're going to have a baby."

He stared into her face in shock, before his eyes darted down to her belly. It had only been a little over a month since they'd been back together, since he'd left the Tendous, left… left… and it had been a week after that, the night they'd moved back into her house, that they'd finally… so she wasn't showing yet. But still… _pregnant._

They were going to have a child. _Another_ child…

He didn't know how to react, how to respond, because all he could think was how very, very bad he was at being a father. How badly he'd hurt Ranma, how badly _this_ was going to hurt Ranma, when he found out… He'd have to tell him, he couldn't keep this from the boy.

Taking a deep breath he turned his mind from his son, the son he had trouble not thinking about, and smiled back at his wife, pulling her into an embrace. "That's… that's wonderful," he whispered into her ear, holding her closer.

She leant up and kissed him softly on the lips before pulling away "It means we'll finally be a _family_." He flinched a little as she said that, but did his best to make sure she didn't notice.

She'd forgotten Ranma, intentionally forgotten him, it was like they'd never even had a son. He _hated_ it. He hated… all those _years_, all that _time;_ his life and the life of his son had been so deeply intertwined, but now he was just expected to _forget_. It was driving him mad, slowly yet surely, but he couldn't talk to her about it, any mention of their son and she'd…

It was hard. So hard. She wasn't… She got upset, easily, if he even said Ranma's name. So it just sat there, between them, poisoning the air.

"I'm going to the shops; I thought we could have something nice for dinner, to celebrate," she said as she smiled at him again, that same sweet, strange smile, and picked up her handbag.

"That sounds like a good idea," he replied, smiling back at her and hoping it didn't look as tired as it felt.

She left, he watched her go, and when she was gone he went back to the living room, sunk down onto the couch and hung his head in his hands. He'd have to get up soon, go to work, but for now… for now he let himself feel, because he'd have to shove it all back down later.

It was funny, though not really, that after all these years… it was _him_ and not the boy that had to be a 'man amongst men'.

And it _hurt_.

000

(_Aiko's POV_)

The scotch burned on its way down, the glass sounded entirely too loud as it banged down onto the bar and her _guilt_, her anger with herself choked her worse than the first cigarette she had ever smoked. Her hand reached out, brushed against the folder laid out on mahogany and inlaid marble, before grabbing it and flipping it open.

_Ranko Tendou_.

A whole person, a whole reality, printed on paper in front of her… well, that wasn't true; he'd changed the records _too_. She was real, only she would never be real.

It never should have started in the first place; _she_ never should have started it. She knew what it was like to have others try and control you, she _knew_, but she'd just let her… arrogance, superiority, _anger_… get in the way of her own good sense, her own compassion.

Well… well she'd gotten what she deserved for that, hadn't she. Oh yes. The scrolls back in her possession, her arrogance shown for what it was, her youngest son barely speaking to her and her _eldest_… well, he'd fallen in love (or something) and was getting married to a woman, she severely doubted would let her in the house. Wonderful.

This horrible folder had arrived two days after… after. This horrible folder which was an unceasing reminder of her own cruelty… she knew she should try to make amends, she knew it, she just didn't know _how_, and she was so, so afraid of trying and being rejected.

So afraid.

Because, and this had to be the worst part, her youngest son was in love (and that love seemed to be reciprocated) with the person she'd wronged. Who could turn him against her, she _knew_ it…

So, for now, she'd just sit in the dark, at her bar and drink her scotch instead of pushing her luck any further than it had already been pushed.

000

(_Kiyoshi's POV_)

Even while he was watching Akane beat up his brother, he couldn't help but be aware of Ranma; Ranma just had that effect on him.

He felt a small, silly grin creep across his face; even though Ranma had been almost constantly busy ever since the first time they'd kissed (which had, unfortunately, been just after the other boy had been disowned) he was almost ridiculously happy. The one person he'd ever met that he really liked, that was everything he wanted in a person, was _his_. It was a dizzying, stupefying thought. Of course they hadn't really had a chance to see what a relationship between them was like, not with Ranma working like he had been, but today was the last day before Ranma was free, which meant… Well, it meant many wonderful things.

He snuck a small look at Ranma, who was leaning against him and smirking as Akane landed another savage blow to Ryu's gut. He smiled, large and foolish, before slowly reaching out and wrapping his arm around Ranma's waist. The other boy startled, looking up at him with wide eyes, before blushing and looking away, as he relaxed into the half-embrace.

It was nice. More than nice. However he didn't want to push Ranma too far, too fast, so he turned his attention back to the fight.

Akane was getting pretty good; she had a strong, earth-bound style that worked exceptionally well against Ryu. When it came to the rest of them… well… he could beat her with his hands tied behind his back, as could Cologne; and _Mousse,_ well… She _was_ getting better against his weapons, but she wasn't used to fighting someone who fought like him and you could see that in how awkward she was sometimes, the little mistakes she made.

Still… she was becoming one of Nerima's great martial artists.

Ranma made a little noise of contentment and snuggled deeper into his embrace; _ah… life was good. _He just hoped it would stay that way.

000

(_Kasumi's POV_)

Nabiki was upstairs with her girlfriend.

This wasn't something that made her all that happy. She'd known… well, not _known_, but suspected for a very long time that Nabiki was… like that. Her sister had never particularly been interested in boys… as anything other than something to play mind-games with, that was… so it wasn't… it wasn't a surprise. No, not a surprise, and from the moment she'd seen that Hitomi girl she'd known, _known_, what was going to happen.

She'd been right, too.

She was trying to be okay with it, she really, really was… but it was… well… it just _was_. Not something that she felt all that comfortable about, and she knew that Nabiki knew that she felt that way (probably because she kept going up to make sure they didn't need anything) which was a bit… awkward. It would get better, she hoped, once she was really used to the idea.

There were more important things to worry about anyway, much more important things. _Ranma_ for one, though he finally seemed to be recovering, but the one thing that was most on her mind was her wedding.

Her _wedding_.

She was getting _married_… which she still hadn't properly come to terms with. She'd been so convinced that she'd never… but that didn't matter, what _did _matter was that she needed to get the thing organised. She'd fought with herself for so long over whether to have a traditional wedding or a western wedding, and with Ryu being absolutely no help whatsoever, as he didn't _care_… well, she would have spent a lot longer trying to work it out if she hadn't seen the _dress._

Simple, elegant, white satin brocade…

It was beautiful, _perfect_, and no too expensive (they had a rather strict budget) so… so yes, they were going to have a western wedding. Now all she had to do was sort the rest of it out… and since they hadn't even set a date… well… _well_. So that was the first thing to do, and after that a venue (though her home would do if there weren't too many people invited) and reception and invitations and catering and, and… and more things than she wanted to think about. So many more things.

Like… well… she Ryu, Ryu's family, if he had any other than that mother of his, and if he _did_ then, should she invite them? Did he want them there? She'd have to talk to him about it, but she didn't know where to start.

_Ah… complicated._

000

(_Nabiki's POV_)

She slammed the phone down, hard, and rested her head in her hands for a moment before letting out an annoyed sigh. She felt more than heard the soft presence coming up behind her and smiled softly as delicate yet strong hands landed on her shoulders, rubbing out the tension of the day. She was tired, irritated, angry, and was getting a real bitch of a headache… _why couldn't people cooperate_?

"No luck?" Hitomi said softly.

She shook her head, "No luck."

Hitomi tutted and moved her hands to her throbbing temples, trying to ease out the headache before it fully manifested.

She sighed again, trying to make her irritation leave with the air exiting her lungs… which didn't work, so she decided to let it out another way. "Stupid girl. Stupid, stupid girl… Threatening to tell her father, as if it's all _my_ fault, as if she didn't agree to the contract in the first place."

"Mmm" Hitomi murmured in agreement as those clever, clever fingers worked their magic on the pain in her head. Briefly debating her options she decided that it was safe to have a little break, just for an hour or so, before she went back to working out ways to force stubborn idiots to bow to her will… so, quickly turning around, she reached out for Hitomi and pulled her close, smiling a little at the other girl's startled squeak, before leaning in to steal a kiss.

She estimated that she had almost fifteen minutes before Kasumi (who was no where near as stupid as she'd always thought her to be) would be coming back to 'see if they wanted anything', so she might as well use it to its full.

000

(_Akane's POV_)

It was getting dark, she was tired, and it was time to go home. She smiled and waved goodbye to Mousse as he followed Cologne back to the Cat Café, some of the old woman's staff were off sick for a couple of days so he'd been helping out at night as well.

She fell into easy steps beside Ranma, who was walking close to Kiyoshi, and smiled an easy smile at him when he looked at her. He smiled back, "Looking good Akane, you're definitely getting better."

Her smile turned a bit smug, "I am, yeah?" She was honestly surprised how fast she'd progressed after Kiyoshi and Ryu had joined in teaching her. They were both pretty strong, Kiyoshi especially so, but she seemed to be able to easily see through Ryu's defence and her successes were boosting her confidence which seemed to help her improve faster.

All in all it was working out well.

She darted a quick glance at Ryu, at her sister's fiancé and swallowed a chuckle when he poked his tongue out at her. _Yeah, that was really mature_. It was strange, and yet completely normal, having him around all the time; he'd moved into the Dojo after his engagement to Kasumi had been announced and after that… it was just like he'd always been there. He just fitted in.

The Kurosawas had just become… _family_, really. Ryu was Ryu, and even with Ranma working all the time Kiyoshi was always there. It was sort of nice, in a weird way.

She shot Ranma another little look; he was finished working for Ukyou now, which meant it would be all of them… which would probably be different, a different dynamic, because he hadn't had much time with Kiyoshi… not that you could tell, with how close they were currently. It made her smile.

Her stomach gave a sudden, ominous growl and she scowled. Training always made her so hungry.

000

(_Mousse's POV_)

Ku Lon had hired more people to work at the Cat Café not long after Xian Pu had disappeared, but she had been short staffed tonight (one of the girls had gotten the flu, and then oh-so-helpfully spread it around) so he'd come in to help her out. He hadn't really wanted to, he'd much rather have been back at home with Akane, but he felt that it was an obligation; Ku Lon had been kinder to him than she could have been.

His mind had kept drifting back to Akane as he'd cooked, which might have been a bit stupid, but he was happy, really, truly _happy_ for the first time in a long time. She made him happy. She was so considerate, so kind, so strong, so compassionate… She was just everything good in this world.

So much of a better person that Xian Pu.

They still hadn't heard from the woman he'd once loved, and he didn't think they were going to. Sometimes he worried, but whenever he did all he had to think about was the way she'd treated him, the way she'd treated Akane… and even the way she'd treated Ranma, who he suspected was going to be a very good friend.

Anyway, the night was over so he could get back home now, have a bath to wash the stink of cooking oil and garlic out of his hair and then creep up to bed. He was sure Akane would be asleep by now.

He made his way out of the kitchen and into the main restaurant, looking fo Ku Lon to say goodnight. He had just spotted her behind the counter and was about to call out when the phone rang. She answered it a bit abruptly, before she suddenly paled and began to waver. He rushed over to her, his hands outstretched to catch her if she fell, but she managed to pull herself together enough to croak out "_**I understand, I'll return immediately**_" into the phone before she hung it up and turned to him with wide, haunted eyes.

"_**Oh Mu Tsu**_…" she moaned, "_**I must go. Something… Our village… I **__**must go**_."

000


End file.
